Payment Methods Explained for Online Casinos
Depositing funds into your online casino account is one of the most important aspects of playing at an online casino. With so many different options out there, how do you know which one is best? And which method is most suitable for you? This article will review each method in turn so that next time you deposit at an online casino you will be choosing the method that is right for you.
The problems with depositing at online casinos are twofold. Firstly online gambling is banned in many states in the USA. The government as a result has put major political pressure on many financial institutions, forcing them to reject payments to online gambling sites. This has made it more difficult in some cases to deposit at your favourite online casino.
The other problem with depositing at an online casino is you often don’t know the trustworthiness of the gambling site in question. You are handing over payment details to a website and you have no idea who these people are. There are many reputable online gambling sites out there which use the most up to date encryption methods. So as long as you choose a trusted site to play at, you won’t have any problems. A good directory providing consumer reviews is bewisebets so make sure you read a few reviews before depositing.
The first deposit method to look at is cheque. This is probably one of the least favoured methods because it will take you nearly 3 weeks to get cleared funds into your account. You need to post the cheque, wait for it to arrive, they need to cash it and wait for it to clear and then transfer it into your playing account. It is a safe way of doing things albeit a slow one. Online casinos don’t often provide extra incentives for depositing this way, probably due to the effort required on their part.
The next method is paypal. Paypal is owned by ebay and handles $ millions worth of transactions every day. For that reason it would be a perfect avenue to use for depositing at an online casino. However about 3 years ago paypal decided that they were no longer going to process gambling transactions due to the strict gambling laws in US. They have recently changed their stance from not processing any gambling transactions as you may now deposit on betfair, the online betting exchange. However I have yet to see an online casino accept paypal for depositing money.
Credit cards are accepted for depositing funds into an online casino account, but for how long remains to be seen. The Us government are pressing for credit card companies to reveal which of their clients are using credit cards to deposit at online gambling sites. Although to a large extend this action has failed, it has led to a number of credit cards companies refusing to process deposits for online gambling sites. If you want to deposit using a credit card the best thing to do is check before signing up. If the credit card will not allow you to deposit at an online casino, simply sign up to one that does. You should also be aware that credit card companies are now treating gambling deposits as cash advances so you will be charged a higher rate of interest on these purchases.
Debit cards are popular in the UK. They are also known as switch or solo cards. They are a great way to deposit for 2 reasons. Firstly they are your current account so wont let you spend more than you can afford to and secondly you can deposit instantly (as with many other methods) not all sites will accept switch cards but many of the UK based sites will. It is important to note here that you may be subject to other age verification checks as people under the age of 18 can own a switch card.
The final method to be discussed is Neteller. Neteller is almost like an online wallet. You can deposit into your wallet using many different methods. Online casinos will provide members who deposit using neteller with an additional bonus (usually 10% extra) in most cases so it is well worth getting a neteller account. Withdrawing back to your neteller account is also instant so it gets round all the waiting as well.
Overall The best method to deposit with is neteller, you receive deposit bonuses as well as instant withdrawals, so well worth considering.
Mark Hirst is an experienced gambler specialising in the online industry. Visit his online gambling directory & search engine for honest consumer reviews and detailed gaming strategies
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